Brent Saltzman
Home Assistant

  1. Building a Sports Ticker using ESPHome and Home Assistant

    Some home automation projects take years to get off the bench, sometimes finally. This was mine. This project took about five years from conception to completion. Not for lack of trying, but simply due to complexity and competing attention, the Sports Ticker project sat on my workbench collecting dust. But…

  2. Upgrading MariaDB from 5.x to 10.6 on CentOS

    Starting with Home Assistant version 2022.2, MariaDB versions older than 10.3 will be depreciated and the Home Assistant recorder will no longer connect to databases running on older versions. This post will walk you through upgrading MariaDB on CentOS. First. Make a backup of your server and databases.…

  3. Webcam Tally Light with Home Assistant

    If you've ever worked in Television or Broadcasting (or any type of production that involves cameras) a Tally light is an indicator that is within view of the talent so they know they're on the air. It's generally when any microphone is unmuted (in…

  4. Using Home Assistant to start a Plex playlist using Alexa

    One of my favorite Home Assistant use cases is to control as much as possible using voice assistants. I enjoy the freedom of just shouting Alexa and asking her to do things and Home Assistant allows you to do so much more than what is available just from the Amazon…

  5. How to use Home Assistant's new Energy Management with your Utility's Smart Meter

    Back in the August 2021 release [https://www.home-assistant.io/blog/2021/08/04/release-20218/] of Home Assistant [https://www.home-assistant.io], Energy Management for your home [https://www.home-assistant.io/home-energy-management/] was introduced. This system combines energy delivery, energy production, energy storage, and energy usage into one single pane…

  6. Using the File Integration in Home Assistant to create a log file

    Using the Notify File component Home Assistant can create a log file of just about anything you want! Learn how to create a text log file such as each time your sump pump runs along with weather conditions and other relevant information.…